Fortis $FTS Shares Sold by QV Investors Inc.

QV Investors Inc. reduced its position in shares of Fortis (NYSE:FTS) by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 822,277 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 30,760 shares during the period. Fortis accounts for approximately 3.6% of QV Investors Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 7th largest position. QV Investors Inc.’s holdings in Fortis were worth $47,091,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in FTS. Trust Co. of Vermont bought a new position in Fortis in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Fortis in the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fortis in the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC bought a new stake in Fortis in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych PZU SA raised its holdings in Fortis by 157.4% during the third quarter. Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych PZU SA now owns 700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 428 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.77% of the company’s stock.

Fortis Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of Fortis stock opened at $54.69 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $56.97 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $56.63. The company has a market cap of $27.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.14 and a beta of 0.43. Fortis has a 12-month low of $48.64 and a 12-month high of $59.40.

Fortis (NYSE:FTS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.01. Fortis had a return on equity of 7.16% and a net margin of 14.17%.The business had revenue of $1.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.83 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.76 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Fortis will post 2.56 EPS for the current year.

Fortis Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be paid a $0.64 dividend. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 19th. Fortis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 73.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on FTS. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce lowered shares of Fortis from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Fortis from $61.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 3rd. TD Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Fortis in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Fortis in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Fortis from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $66.33.

Fortis Profile

Fortis Inc is a Canadian diversified electric and gas utility holding company headquartered in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. Through a portfolio of regulated utility subsidiaries, the company develops, owns and operates electricity and natural gas transmission, distribution and generation assets. Fortis serves customers across multiple jurisdictions in Canada, the United States and the Caribbean, focusing on the delivery of safe, reliable energy to residential, commercial and industrial users.

The company’s core activities include operation and maintenance of transmission and distribution networks, ownership of generation facilities, and investment in grid modernization and system resilience.